7 Reasons to Sell Your Home This Winter

It boils down to one question that you need to ask yourself— If a buyer came up today and offered you what you’re asking… would you take it? If so, than your home needs to be for sale.

Home buyers this time of year are serious. During the holiday season, the less serious buyers take a vacation from house shopping. That leaves only serious buyers left to buy your home. Many of these serious lookers have just sold their own homes. They must buy! You can take advantage of the situation by just remembering the basics.

Have it well priced.

Make sure it is in good condition.

Know that you need a strong marketing plan in place to get the word out.

Do what you can to make it accessible to potential buyers.

7 Reasons You Should Sell Your Home This Winter

1) Holiday buyers are serious, you should be to.

Motivated buyers are the major benefit to selling in the snowy months.

Around the holidays less people are buying and selling, but the ones who are, they’re serious. That means you are more likely to get strong offers, and more likely to close quickly. This highly interested audience saves you having to deal with “window-shoppers.”

2) Extra exposure means your home sells quicker.

Exposure is everything.

Search sites are made to show listings. During peak season we have hundreds of pages on our search site. That means unless your listing is brand new or being specifically searched for… eventually it’ll be pushed down the list. Selling your home is all about getting it in front of the most eyes possible, and as it get further back less people will see it.
However, In the winter months less people are listing their homes. That means yours has an opportunity to remain on the front page longer! That means additional free exposure just by listing in the winter.

3) Shoveling snow is much easier than extensive grounds keeping.

Put away the mower and pull out your shovel.

One of the most irritating parts about listing your home in the spring or summer is the constant grounds keeping. Most people do this anyway, but during the period where you are showing, it’s extra important.

Often homeowners invest time and money into new plantings, sod, and overdo upkeep. If your landscaping is a selling point, the responsibilities are even more important. You’ll need to prune the flowers, shape the hedges, and keep your grass the perfect shade of green!

During the winter, most of our outdoor chores come to a screaming halt. Grass stops growing, flower die, and snow takes over. Maintenance becomes—If there’s snow, shovel it and lay deicer. No more spending entire weekends outside making sure your grounds are presentable. Just buy a $9 shovel and get to work!

Moving to a new city is hard enough. Buyers want to find a home and purchase.

Many people relocated for work in the first-quarter (new year) So, people moving into town to start work obviously need to find a home and they need to do it quick. Often they will visit the home several times and make an offer that very same weekend.

This means every winter there is a designated group of people looking for new homes quick. With big companies like Koch Industries, Coleman, and all the aviation employers— this is especially true for Wichita.

5) You’ll be ahead of the massive rush of homes listed in early spring.

There are several advantages to being on the market ahead of the competition.

If your home doesn’t sell over the winter, there is a huge advantage being on the market in early spring before everyone else. Buyer activity always shoots up a month or two before the stampede of folks who put their home on the market in mid to late spring.

Since there are fewer homes on the market that time of year, those with their home already on the market, have buyers with spring fever flooding through their house and making offers.

6) Holiday decorations are one of the most powerful ways to appeal to a buyer’s emotions.

The cozier your home looks, the more likely buyers are to see themselves there.

Homes tend to “show better” around the holidays. A big part of selling your home is getting people to envision themselves in the space. Holiday decorations tend to intensify emotional appeal.

For many people the holidays are the busiest time of the year, and the time when they use their home most. Formal dining rooms, fireplaces, and large kitchens are all examples of features that get extra attention around the holidays.

7) Buyers looking for a tax benefit are in a rush to buy before the new year.

Buyers looking for write-offs may have extra incentive to buy quick.

This admittedly has more to do with the tax benefits of buying in the winter than selling. Getting a home purchase in on the previous year can be a huge write-off. So, as a seller, you can attract and fast-track prospective buyers who are looking for a tax break— they have a huge incentive to wrap up the deal by the end of the year.

Let’s Make It Happen!

It might seem scary to list during the “slow” season. But by taking advantage of the benefits and pushing ahead, it’ll pay off huge when you sell your home.

You don’t need to do it alone! Our team of agents and support staff are here to get your home sold, and to do it quickly. Get started by finding out how much your home is really worth, or start searching for your dream home!